St Patrick's Day Corned Beef Dinner

Happy St Patrick's Day to all who is celebrating.  We celebrated with our friends who is of irish decent with a corned beef, potatoes and cabbage dinner.  How else?  this is how this chinese lady celebrate any festival or events, no fuss no muss, just eat.  This chinese lady nearly did not get dinner ready in time,  i had misread the cooking instructions on the bag of corned beef,  i saw 1 hour and did not read the rest, so, i thought i just cook the slab of corned beef one and a half hour before dinner.  But, before i started cooking, i re-read and oh my, it is 1 hour for every pound of corned beef and i have 3 pounds!!!!.  So, think fast,  ok, out came the pressure cooker, my saviour,  put in 1/2 inch of water, put a saucer to raise the corned beef and pressurized the meat for 20 minutes.  The corned beef is fork tender now,  into the oven it went sitting on a bed of potatoes.  There is a chinese or rather cantonese saying, - chor yau chor cheok meaning a wrong turned for the better - I saved a couple of hours of electricity.

To go with the corned beef dinner, i made Irish Soda Bread which was good with a  large dab of butter and i will post this recipe asap.  

Beef Stroganoff

Renee, my grand-daughter, loves pasta in any shapes or form and she loves eating beef like in slices or in a piece of steak, but she will not eat a beef burger.  I thought that she does not like ground beef but she will eat ground beef in the Bolognese Sauce.  So, it must be the burger that is not appealing to her cos she will not have a chicken burger too. 

I know that she will enjoy this dish, Beef Stroganoff and it did.

According to  Wiki, Beef Stroganoff or Beef Stroganov (in Russian: Бефстроганов Befstróganov) is a Russian dish of sautéed pieces of beef served in a sauce with smetana or sour cream. From its origins in 19th-century Russia, it has become popular around the world, with considerable variation from the original recipe.

Braised Beef Shank

I love this beef stew with daikon/radish.  It is a Cantonese favorite and it's usually eaten with egg noodle soup and tasted just as delicious with white rice.   I like mine with lots of beef tendon, so i cooked this dish with beef shank instead of the usual beef brisket.  Adding Daikon /radish to this stew is a must as beef and daikon/radish together is a marriage made in heaven..  Daikon/radish is bland by itself but will taste very distinct and tasty after it has soaked up those wonderful flavors of this stew. How to choose a good daikon/radish?  As with any root crop, look for one that are free of growth cracks and bruises with firm and crisp roots. It must be heavy as a light one will be dry and hollow which is not good eats.  Chu Hou Sauce is made from soybeans, garlic, ginger and sesame seeds,therefore a convenient cooking sauce for braising meats and vegetables.  It brought this stew totally to another level  and i consider this sauce as an important ingredient.

Bulgogi and Kalbi/Galbi(Korean barbecued beef)

There are three dishes in Korean cuisine most people are familiar with. The first one is kimchi which is  fermented spicy cabbage.  The 2nd and 3rd most popular are Korean barbecued beef dishes, Bulgogi and Kalbi / Galbi.  The primary difference between bulgogi and kalbi/galbi, is the cuts of beef used, although the marinate is the same..  Kalbi/Galbi uses short-ribs while Bulgogi  is thinly sliced, against the grain rib-eye steak.  The marinate makes these two types of beef,  sweet, tender, juicy and makes a deliciously enjoyable eating experience.  Originally cooked over a wood fire but when prepared in at home or restaurants nowadays, the meat is often seared on a special curved broiler plate/hibachi grill placed in the middle of the table, where each guest cooks his or her own.

Bulgogi and Kalbi/Galbi are served as a main dish with a bowl of hot steamy white rice or as a component in other Korean dishes such as japchae, lettuce wraps, banchan (an assortment of Korean side dishes), bibimbap, and kimbap to name a few.  I will post some of the banchan recipes in my up-coming postings, so do come back for them.

Fried Tofu Squares with Beef

What do you really miss/crave when away from your homeland? Do you crave some basic things, that seem small, but their absence is heavily missed. I do and what i missed most is - going to the wet markets and getting all the ingredients to cook.  This simple ingredient is tasteless, but delicately flavored--soft soy bricks known as tofu.  Here  there are two main kinds of tofu, silken or soft tofu, and firm or regular tofu and they are boxed.  What i missed most is the kind which is called - SANG FAH in cantonese.  They are usually square and has a thin skin layer of the pattern of the muslin cloth used to cover it.  In fact, in IPOH, MALAYSIA a city which is popular for the best tofu, even displays the tofu still with the muslin cloth and when you wish to purchase it, then only will the cloth be removed.  I don't know if this practice is still there and i hope it is cos they are the best tofu, so smooth and delicate.  One bite and you will be in TOFU HEAVEN.  IPOH -lites, please tell me that these tofu are still selling in the wet markets.

Well, the tofus available here are not so bad, good dishes can be created with them and this fried tofu recipe that i am sharing will be welcomed by your family whether it be for lunch or dinner. Make it more saucy and it will be extra delicious over noodles/pasta.

Beef Stew

This is my version of the classic Beef stew , a savory meal which is a deeply comforting food that will warm your family up on a cold winter night.